Cigarette tube packaging apparatus

ABSTRACT

A packaging apparatus for cigarette tubes including a supply hopper for the cigarette tubes and a chamber positioned beneath the supply hopper and in communication therewith. And at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement to project into the chamber and divide the supply hopper and the chamber. The chamber having a vertically reciprocal bottom panel and a horizontally reciprocal rear panel and an open front.

United States Patent [111 3,5

[ 72] Inventor Al'ggld Kastner M a] N 5 References Cited 10 0 Armand Lavergne, ontre orth Q Canada UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,005,363 lO/19Il Thomas 222/440X 2: Appl. No. 803,796

22 Filed Mar. 3, 1969 [45] Patented May 25, I971 [32] Priority Nov. 13, I968 [33] Canada [31] 035,079

[54] CIGARETTE TUBE PACKAGING APPARATUS 16 Claims, 7 Drawing Figs.

U.S. Cl 222/440 GOlf 11/28 222/425, 440

Primary Examiner-Stanley I-I. Tollberg Attorney-Browdy and Neimark ABSTRACT: A packaging apparatus for cigarette tubes including a supply hopper for the cigarette tubes and a chamber positioned beneath the supply hopper and in communication therewith. And at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement to project into the chamber and divide the supply hopper and the chamber. The chamber having a vertically reciprocal bottom panel and a horizontally reciprocal rear panel and an open front.

PATENTED HAY25 |97l SHEET 1 BF 4 INVENTOB BYM m If X ATTORNEYS PATENTEU HAY2 512m SHEET 2 OF 4 INVENTOR W 'M ATTORNEYS ATTORNEYS CIGARETTE TUBE PACKAGING APPARATUS The present invention related to cigarette tube packaging apparatus, and particularly to apparatus for packaging cigarette tubes of the filter-tip variety.

The demand for homemade" cigarettes has been increasing over the years due to the increasing cost of readymade cigarettes, and the greatest demand has been for readymade filter-tip cigarette tubes which are filled with bulk tobacco by the user on special type cigarette making machines. In fact, the demand for filter-tip cigarette tubes is becoming greater than the supply, and this is based principally on the fact that up until now, no suitable apparatus or machinery has been available to package the tubes in containers for public consumption.

Machines for producing cigarette tubes quickly and in great number are now available and have been for several years, but no machinery is presently available which will package the tubes in containers at even close to the speed at which the tubes are made. In fact it is still the practice to package cigarette tubes by hand, a tedious and time consuming operation.

Various attempts have been made to provide a machine which will quickly package tubes but until the present invention none have been successful.

In understanding the problems involved in successful packaging one must examine the article which it is desired to package. In the present case the article is a cigarette tube without tobacco, having one end which is provided with a filter-tip while the remainder of the tube is simply a flimsy cylinder of very thin paper with negligible weight. In view of the fact that the characteristics such as weight of a cigarette tube vary from one end to the other it is not possible to use methods conventional in the packaging of pencils, or chalk sticks which are solid throughout their length, and a completely new apparatus for cigarette tube packaging is required and has been invented.

It is the object of the invention then to provide apparatus for quickly packaging filter-tip cigarette tubes in containers.

This object will become apparent from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates the apparatus of the present invention in perspective view;

FIG. 2 illustrates the apparatus of FIG. 1 in side view;

FIG. 3 illustrates in enlarged perspective view a portion of F IG. 1;

FIG. 4 illustrates in enlarged top view the separator blades shown in FIG. 1, 3 and 4;

FIG. 5 illustrates the blades of FIG. 4 in side view;

FIG. 6 illustrates a side view of the separator blades of FIGS. 4 and 5 and in a different position; and

FIG. 7 illustrates in perspective view a further embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1 illustrates the packaging apparatus according to the invention, and FIG. 2 illustrates the apparatus of FIG. 1 in side view with portions removed for a better understanding.

It will be understood that structural and supporting framing has been omitted from the drawings for clarity.

Numeral 1 indicates a hopper generally, into which cigarette tubes which are to be packaged are placed in a horizontal position with the filter end of the tube against the back panel 3. The hopper 1 comprises front and back panels 2 and 3 respectively, and downwardly converging side panels 4 and 5. The hopper is open at the top; and open at the bottom to more or less funnel the tubes into an upper compartment 6 framed by side panels 7 and 8, front panel 9 and a rear panel 10.

A lower compartment indicated generally at 11 is provided immediately below the upper compartment 6, and is framed by side panels 12 and 13 (which may be continuations of panels 7 and 8) and a bottom panel 14 and a rear panel 15. The front portion of the lower compartment 11 is open.

The depth D of the hopper and the upper and lower compartments is only slightly greater than the length of the cigarette tubes being packaged. The dimensions of the upper and lower compartments are substantially identical. The height and width of both the upper and lower compartments are dimensioned to hold the number of tubes which it is desired to package in one container or box.

In one construction two blades 16 and 17 are mounted for reciprocal horizontal movement through slots 18 and 19 respectively to divide the upper and lower compartments. In effect, the compartments 6 and 11 may be considered as being a single chamber divided into upper and lower compartments by the inwardly projecting separator blades 16 and 17.

In FIG. 1 the two separator blades 16 and 17 are withdraw from the chamber providing a direct communication between the upper and lower compartments.

In attached FIG. 3, which is an enlarged perspective view of the upper compartment and lower compartment, the separator blades 16 and 17 are seen in closed overlapping relationship providing two separate and distinct compartments 6 & 11. In FIG. 3, a portion of the front panel 9 of the upper compartment has been removed for clarity.

The reciprocal horizontal movement is imparted to the separator blades 16 and 17 by double-acting cylinders 20 and 21 respectively, which when actuated simultaneously move the blades together in overlapping relationship to divide the upper and lower compartments and simultaneously withdraw the blades therefrom in a sequence which will be explained in more detail below.

The bottom or floor plate 14 of the lower compartment 11 is mounted on a double acting cylinder 22 for movement between the lower position shown in FIG. 1 to a position contacting the lower surface of the separator blades 16 and 17 when the blades are positioned dividing the upper and lower compartments. The lowermost position of the floor plate 14 is shown at 14in FIG. 2 and the uppermost position at 14'.

The back panel 15 of the lower compartment is in the form of a transfer or pusher plate mounted on a double acting cylinder 23 for movement from the rear position shown in FIG. 1 and in full lines in FIG. 2, to a forward or transfer position shown in broken lines at 15' in FIG. 2.

To initially commence operation the hopper is substantially filled with cigarette tubes, with the transfer or rear plate 15 in the rear position shown in FIG. 1, and the separator blades 16 and 17 in open position and the bottom plate 14 raised to the position shown at 14' in FIG. 2.

In this position the upper compartment 6 will be filled with cigarette tubes. The bottom plate 14 is then lowered to the position shown in FIG. 1 and the supply of tubes previously occupying the upper compartment 6 will be lowered to the lower compartment 11 with a further supply of tubes from the hopper filling the upper compartment.

The separator blades 16 and 17 are then closed together as shown in FIG. 3 separating the upper and lower compartments and cylinder 23 is actuated to move the transfer plate 15 forwardly and displace or push the tubes from the lower compartment 11 out through the open front and into a packing box placed immediately adjacent the open front. The positioning of a box 24 to receive the tubes displaced from the lower compartment is shown in broken lines in FIG. 2.

It may be mentioned here that the size of the lower compartment and its front opening will be slightly smaller than the box 24 into which the tubes are transferred to eliminate the possibility of any of the outer tubes being crushed as they move from the lower compartment into the box.

Continuing the operation, the transfer plate 15 is then moved rearwardly to the position shown in FIG. 1, and the bottom plate 14 elevated to the position 14' shown in FIG. 2, and the separator blades 16 and 17 are withdrawn. The bottom plate 14 is then lowered carrying a further supply of tubes from the upper compartment to the lower compartment as explained above. The separator blades are then closed and the transfer plate 15 moved forwardly to displace the supply of tubes into another empty box positioned in front of the lower compartment.

The rear or transfer plate is then moved rearwardly, and the bottom plate 14 is elevated, and the separator blades 16 and 17 are withdrawn, etc. and the cycle repeated.

The construction and operation of the various double-acting cylinders 20, 21, 22 and 23 need not be explained here. The cylinders may be hydraulic or pneumatic, and their sequence of operation may e controlled manually by switches, or automatically in sequence by cam activated switches or by any suitable means.

It has been found that a flow or movement of cigarette tubes from the hopper l to completely fill the upper compartment 6 proceeds normally and without jamming or arching of the tubes if the hopper is maintained with a reasonable supply of tubes, for while the weight of any one tube is negligible the number of tubes in the hopper appears to provide the necessary weight to press the lowermost tubes into the upper compartment. However, while the cigarette tubes are actually solids albeit with negligible weight the movement of the tubes together is a frictional contact and any possibility of the tubes jamming or arching at the entrance to the upper compartment must be avoided. This jamming or arching of the tubes may be prevented by providing a vibrating member or vibrator 25 adjacent the hopper to impart slight vibration movements to the hopper and to the tubes.

One or more vibrators may be used and these can be secured to the hopper panels or to the panels forming the compartments. The vibration maintains the tubes in honeycomb relationship and safeguards against jamming of the tubes. It should be noted that while the presence of the vibrator is not absolutely necessary for a successful operation of the device inasmuch as the weight of the tubes and the movements of the blades and various cylinder operated panels appear to provide the necessary vibration to keep the tubes moving. the use of the vibrator is simply a further safeguard against jamming.

Also it has been found that a slight application of heat to the hopper panels (by suitable heating means not shown) may result in a better movement of the tubes in the hopper.

To provide visual inspection of the movement of the tubes the front panels 2 and 9 of the hopper and upper compartment respectively may be constructed of a transparent material such as plexiglass, or transparent plastic or the like.

A top view of the inner ends of the separator blades 16 and 17 used in the present invention is shown in FIG. 4 with F IG. 5 illustrating the blades of FIG. 4 in front view. A single cigarette tube 26 is also shown in FIG. 4 and 5 with the filtertip end of the tube shown at 27 in FIG. 4. The portions 28 and 29 of the inner ends of the blades 16 and 17 respectively which will make contact with the filter-tip 27 are substantially at right angles to the direction of travel of the blades, and are of a width approximating the length of the filter-tip. The filtertip end of the cigarette tube is the only portion of the tube with any substance at all and it is this portion of the tube that must be contacted to roll or displace the tube to one side or the other of the advancing blades if crushing of the tubes between the blades is to be avoided. The remaining portions 30 and 31 of the blades 16 and 17 are swept back or inclined as shown in FIG. 4.

In side view in FIG. 5 it will be seen that the inner ends of the blades are bevelled to a rounded edge but are not sharpened, for a sharp edge on the blades would catch and penetrate a tube with crushing of the tube between the blades. FIG. 5 also indicates a cigarette tube 26 in cross section between advancing blades. In this drawing, one or other of the advancing blades will first strike the tube and the blade upon contacting the tube will cause the tube to roll or be displaced either above or below the blade.

It is surprising that this displacement will happen even when the tube is contacted dead center by the advancing blades. and while applicant cannot explain this action it is a fact that during all trails using the apparatus not once has a tube been destroyed or crushed by the blades. It is understood that the blades must rather swiftly be inserted into the mass of tubes if a satisfactory penetration and separation without tube destruction is to be attained but the reason why speed appears to be critical is not known.

FIG. 6 illustrates in side view the blades in closed and overlapping position separating the upper and lower compartments, and a plurality of tubes above and below the blades which have been separated by the penetration of the blades.

The exact configuration of the blades may of course vary from that shown in the drawings without departing from the scope of the invention.

In the above description of the apparatus the use of two converging blades has been covered. However the use of only one blade to separate the upper and lower compartments is well within the scope of the invention.

Also the general apparatus of the invention may be practiced by design the equipment to eliminate the upper compart ment 6, and positioning the lower compartment 11 directly beneath hopper l. Slots for the blades would then be provided at the points of joining of the hopper and the lower compartment. Such a design is within the scope of the invention, but it has been found that the provision of an upper compartment of the same dimensions and immediately above the lower compartment results in a better packing of the tubes together and more uniformity in the number of tubes placed in succeeding boxes.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of the invention wherein only one blade 17' is used and only one compartment 11 is provided beneath the hopper 1. The entry of the blade 17' through slots 18 and 19' divides the hopper from the compartment 11'. The sequence of operation of the blade 17', the rear panel 15' and the bottom panel 14 are as described above with reference to blades 16 and 17, rear panel 15 and bottom panel 14.

In FIG. ,7 the end panels of the compartment 11' are shown at 12' and 13'.

The apparatus described above and illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 7 can be operated manually. This is, the hopper can be filled manually and the boxes which are to be filled can be placed and removed manually, and switches to control the operation of the various cylinders can be operated manually, but as the apparatus in full automatic production is capable of filling 25 boxes per minute (each box containing 200 plus tubes) complete automation of the apparatus and incorporation of the apparatus into mass production techniques and machinery is desirable.

For example the apparatus can be used in conjunction with apparatus for automatically folding and forming cardboard boxes from blanks, and conveying apparatus to convey the formed boxes to the open front portion of the lower compartment for filling with tubes, and on to box final folding and fastening apparatus. Moreover a conveyor system running directly from one or more cigarette tubemaking machines to the hopper will ensure a continuous supply of tubes for packaging.

As discussed above as a positive safeguard against the tubes arching or bridging in the hopper and preventing complete filling of the upper compartment, a vibrator 25 may be provided. Alternatively a rotating eccentric wheel or gear (not shown) could be positioned adjacent one or both sides of the hopper to impart vibration or impulse to the hopper and the tubes. The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

Iclaim:

1. Apparatus for packaging or filling cigarette tubes into containers, comprising a hopper to receive a supply of cigarette tubes and a chamber beneath the hopper and at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal projection into said chamber to divide the chamber into upper and lower compartments, the lower compartment having an open front and a bottom panel mounted for vertical reciprocal movement and a rear panel mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement. I

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the rear panel is mounted for movement from a position forming a back to the lower compartment to a position adjacent the open front, and the bottom panel is mounted for movement from a position forming a bottom to the lower compartment to a position adjacent the said separator blade when said separator blade is projecting between the compartments.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the upper compartment and the lower compartment are identical in size.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising vibrator means to vibrate the compartment.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the upper compartment has front, back and sidewalls, and the lower compartment has sidewalls, the separator blade projecting between the said upper and lower compartments through a slot provided between the sidewalls of the compartments.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1 comprising two separator blades.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6 wherein the upper compartment has front and back and sidewalls, and the lower compartment has sidewalls, the said separator blades projecting between the said upper and lower compartments through slots provided between the sidewalls of the compartments.

8. Apparatus for packaging or filling filter cigarette tubes into containers, comprising a hopper to receive a supply of cigarette tubes, the cigarette tubes in the hopper being positioned to move in a direction transverse to their longitudinal axes, and a compartment beneath the hopper and at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between a fully retracted position and a position in which the compartment is separated from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper, the at least one separation blade reciprocating transversely to the longitudinal axes of the cigarette tubes, the compartment having an open front and stationary sidewalls parallel to the longitudinal axes of the cigarette tubes, and a bottom panel mounted for vertical reciprocal movement between the sidewalls towards the said at least one separation blade, and a rear panel mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between the sidewalls toward the open front.

9. Apparatus for packaging or filling filter cigarette tubes into containers, comprising a hopper to receive a supply of cigarette tubes, the cigarette tubes in the hopper being positioned to move in a direction transverse to their longitudinal axes, and a chamber beneath the hopper and at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between a fully retracted position and a position in which the chamber is divided into upper and lower compartments and the lower compartment is separated from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper,the at least one separation blade reciprocating transversely to the longitudinal axes of the cigarette tubes, the upper compartment having stationary front, back and sidewalls, and the lower compartment having an open front and stationary sidewalls, the sidewalls of the upper and lower compartments being parallel to the longitudinal axes of the cigarette tubes, and a bottom panel in the lower compartment mounted for vertical reciprocal movement between the sidewalls of the lower compartment and the open front.

10. Apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the said rear panel is mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between the sidewalls from a position forming the back of the compart ment to a position adjacent the open front, and the bottom panel is mounted for vertical reciprocal movement from a position forming the bottom of the compartment to a position adjacent the at least one separation blade when the blade is in position separating the compartment from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper.

11. Apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the said rear panel of the lower compartment is mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between the sidewalls of the lower com- .partment to a position adjacent the open front, and the bottom panel of the lower compartment is mounted for vertical reciprocal movement from a position forming the bottom of the lower compartment to a position adjacent the at least one separation blade when the lade 1s dividing the upper and lower compartments and separating the lower compartment from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper.

12. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the upper and lower compartments are identical in size.

13. Apparatus according to claim 9 further comprising vibrator means to vibrate the hopper.

14. Apparatus according to claim 9 further comprising vibrator means to vibrate the upper and lower compartments.

15. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the at least one separation blade divides the chamber into upper and lower compartments by moving into the chamber through a horizontal slot provided between the stationary sidewalls of the upper and lower compartments.

16. Apparatus according to claim 9 comprising two reciprocating separation blades, and wherein the two separation blades divide the chamber into upper and lower compartments by moving into the chamber through horizontal slots provided between the stationary sidewalls of the upper and lower compartments. 

1. Apparatus for packaging or filling cigarette tubes into containers, comprising a hopper to receive a supply of cigarette tubes and a chamber beneath the hopper and at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal projection into said chamber to divide the chamber into upper and lower compartments, the lower compartment having an open front and a bottom panel mounted for vertical reciprocal movement and a rear panel mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement.
 2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the rear panel is mounted for movement from a position forming a back to the lower compartment to a position adjacent the open front, and the bottom panel is mounted for movement from a position forming a bottom to the lower compartment to a position adjacent the said separator blade when said separator blade is projecting between the compartments.
 3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the upper compartment and the lower compartment are identical in size.
 4. Apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising vibrator means to vibrate the compartment.
 5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the upper compartment has front, back and sidewalls, and the lower compartment has sidewalls, the separator blade projecting between the said upper and lower compartments through a slot provided between the sidewalls of the compartments.
 6. Apparatus according to claim 1 comprising two separator blades.
 7. Apparatus according to claim 6 wherein the upper compartment has front and back and sidewalls, and the lower compartment has sidewalls, the said separator blades projecting between the said upper and lower compartments through slots provided between the sidewalls of the compartments.
 8. Apparatus for packaging or filling filter cigarette tubes into containers, comprising a hopper to receive a supply of cigarette tubes, the cigarette tubes in the hopper being positioned to move in a direction transverse to their longitudinal axes, and a compartment beneath the hopper and at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between a fully retracted position and a position in which the compartment is separated from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper, the at least one separation blade reciprocating transversely to the longitudinal axes of the cigarette tubes, the compartment having an open front and stationary sidewalls parallel to the longitudinal axes of the cigarette tubes, and a bottom panel mounted for vertical reciprocal movement between the sidewalls towards the said at least one separation blade, and a rear panel mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between the sidewalls toward the open front.
 9. Apparatus for packaging or filling filter cigarette tubes into containers, comprising a hopper to receive a supply of cigarette tubes, the cigarette tubes in the hopper being positioned to move in a direction transverse to their longitudinal axes, and a chamber beneath the hopper and at least one separation blade mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between a fully retracted position and a position in which the chamber is divided into upper and lower compartments and the lower compartment is separated from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper, the at least one separation blade reciprocating transversely to the longitudinal axes of The cigarette tubes, the upper compartment having stationary front, back and sidewalls, and the lower compartment having an open front and stationary sidewalls, the sidewalls of the upper and lower compartments being parallel to the longitudinal axes of the cigarette tubes, and a bottom panel in the lower compartment mounted for vertical reciprocal movement between the sidewalls of the lower compartment and the open front.
 10. Apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the said rear panel is mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between the sidewalls from a position forming the back of the compartment to a position adjacent the open front, and the bottom panel is mounted for vertical reciprocal movement from a position forming the bottom of the compartment to a position adjacent the at least one separation blade when the blade is in position separating the compartment from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper.
 11. Apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the said rear panel of the lower compartment is mounted for horizontal reciprocal movement between the sidewalls of the lower compartment to a position adjacent the open front, and the bottom panel of the lower compartment is mounted for vertical reciprocal movement from a position forming the bottom of the lower compartment to a position adjacent the at least one separation blade when the blade is dividing the upper and lower compartments and separating the lower compartment from the supply of cigarette tubes in the hopper.
 12. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the upper and lower compartments are identical in size.
 13. Apparatus according to claim 9 further comprising vibrator means to vibrate the hopper.
 14. Apparatus according to claim 9 further comprising vibrator means to vibrate the upper and lower compartments.
 15. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the at least one separation blade divides the chamber into upper and lower compartments by moving into the chamber through a horizontal slot provided between the stationary sidewalls of the upper and lower compartments.
 16. Apparatus according to claim 9 comprising two reciprocating separation blades, and wherein the two separation blades divide the chamber into upper and lower compartments by moving into the chamber through horizontal slots provided between the stationary sidewalls of the upper and lower compartments. 